Professor Vogelaar's class, Globalization, New Media and Social Activism, hosted an event Thursday April 22, 2008 entitled Mediating Social Activism: A Conversation about New Issues in Social Change.
The speakers included:
*Trevor Thomas* joined the Human Rights Campaign in October of 2007 as Deputy Communications Director. Prior to HRC, Thomas worked for Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm, serving in her executive office. There he directed rapid response and surrogate communications for the governor's cabinet and top advisors, including the First Gentleman. Thomas joined the governor's team in early 2006, serving on her successful re-election campaign. He was responsible for opposition research, confirming the accuracy of campaign advertisements and messaging, and executing rapid response. The Washington Post named the campaign as one of the '10 Best' in the 2006 election cycle. Thomas, a journalist by trade, worked as an assignment editor and news producer at West Michigan's NBC affiliate – WOOD-TV. In this role, he helped cover state and national stories, including the 2004 presidential election, the 2002 state gubernatorial election and the attacks on September 11, 2001. He also previously served as a producer/reporter at WGVU – the NPR/PBS affiliate.
In July of 2004, Thomas served as a guest essayist for The Grand Rapids Press, speaking out against an anti-gay marriage amendment on the Michigan ballot. Following its publication, he served on a number of GLBT panels at Grand Valley State University, Western Michigan University, Aquinas College and at the 2004 National Academic Advising Association's national conference in Cincinnati, Ohio. Thomas' work also includes a three-year tenure on the board of directors for the Network of Western Michigan: a non-profit that aides the local gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in broadcast journalism from Grand Valley State University. While in college, he served two years as Chair of Education for Grand Valley's gay-straight alliance – a position he created. He's also credited with starting a gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender speaker's program aimed at educating students on sexual orientation and gender identity. Thomas currently serves as an alumni advisor for the newly created GLBT campus center, expected to open in the fall of 2008. A native Michigander, raised in the small town of Marne, Thomas' family – including his parents who are both retired auto-workers – still reside there.
*Rachel Balick* is Communications Coordinator with the Human Rights Campaign. She has previously done communications work at the Center for Policy Alternatives, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the city of Northampton, Massachusetts. She is a Smith College graduate.
*Dan Forman* joined World Wildlife Fund in January, where he is primarily focused on gaining publicity for WWF campaigns, programs and major events, such as Earth Hour. Dan has spent much of his career in the entertainment industry, most recently at TLC, where he was responsible for PR for such shows as LA Ink, Miami Ink, What Not To Wear, Big Medicine, and Trading Spaces. Dan previously worked in the music industry in NYC, where he was the publicist for Aerosmith, James Brown, Michael Jackson, Prince, Hanson, Meat Loaf, “Weird” Al Yankovic, Nickelback, The Dresden Dolls, Killswitch Engage and others. Dan is a native of Northern Virginia, and he and his wife live in Silver Spring.
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Amanda Carufel* is a Public Relations Manager for World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and a graduate of Georgetown University (C `99). At WWF, Amanda’s PR beat is corporate environmental responsibility and WWF’s engagement with business. WWF sees a future in which business makes a positive contribution to the well-being of society and the planet. To achieve this, WWF engages in challenging and innovative partnerships with business to drive change. Prior to WWF, Amanda worked as a Communications Specialist at the Department of Homeland Security, where she managed communications with Congress, DHS leadership and federal, state and local government. She cut her non-profit teeth as Public Affairs Manager for the American Immigration Lawyers Association, an immigration advocacy group. Before that, she was Communications Director for Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a government watchdog.
Amanda speaks Spanish, attempts French, and rumor has it she has a pretty good control of the English language as well. Recently, she taught literature and writing at Higher Achievement, an after-school program for DC middle school students. Amanda got her start in communications at the age of 10, hosting a radio show for kids called Just Kiddin', at the NPR affiliate in her hometown of Tampa. She continued to work in radio for the next decade, including at Georgetown’s own WGTB. Amanda once stood in as the Washington Post's mascot, Ned the Newshound, during a short stint in PR for the newspaper.
As a campaign coordinator in PETA's Factory Farming Campaigns department, *Ashley Byrne* works to improve the lives of farmed animals through outreach to the media and the public about the horrors of factory farming and the benefits of a vegan lifestyle. Ashley has been vegan and active in the animal rights community for over ten years. Before coming to PETA, she worked for a Washington, DC firm that provides research services to political and corporate clients. She lives in Washington, DC and holds a Bachelors degree in Humanities from the University of Colorado at Boulder.